I guess they can, but will they?
Short answer: No
Slightly longer answer: Nooooooo
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NI belong to MA, so it should be safe.
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Itâs likely a NDA issue. But they could in fact say we cannot say anything because of NDA. But not saying anything is an answer too. I donât think itâs wise to keep the playerbase in the dark. For example I have not wanted to go chase the stable assassinator gun because I risk not being able to finish in time before the âextinction eventâ, having all my mission progress lost, and risk receiving no compensation.
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My guess is;
Mindark made this public to try and get/force the remaining planets on the crazy train genesis probe dumb idea, and now itâs backfired.
Mindark has publicly threatened them and made players leave their planets because of uncertainty. This may give the remaining planet partners legal grounds to sue Mindark!(basically Mindark is actively hurting the PP financially with these public statements).
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That would be the best case scenario for the silence. A big fat lawsuit in one hand, and a buy out offer in the other..and ,maybe we see another 20 years.
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I think if it comes down to a case of dropping stuff from the game if not converted and then offering some sort of âcompensationâ (dunno how that would work with clothes⌠I canât imagine it would - at least not in any fair/satisfying way) it would be better for MA to try and utilise the community to convert stuff⌠if any are willing/skilled enough.
OK I know thatâs pie in the sky, but it would be nice. I can dream.
I rather like the idea that if a PP drops the ball, the planet/resources could be designated âplayer ownedâ, and anyone who helps out with converting/maintaining it gets a cut of the pie. That would be a real world first, and something cool for MA to brag about in their press releases.
Can see the headline now: âMMO developer Mindark outsources world ownership to players to save planet from extinctionâ
OK Iâll go back to my glue now⌠,-)
âAh⌠the unconverted planet(s?)âŚâ
Wistrel
This seems likely⌠I wonder what folks signed up to when they started though⌠I mean surely the notion of continued maintenance and engine switching work should have been addressed even before anyone started building a planet.
Historically we saw that big long period of years of silence with NI where it seemed to be in no mans land after the company folded, before it got new development again. In that situation though it sort of functioned at least, if only badly. But with the move to a new engine, thatâs surely going to see the end of all assets/resources if not converted, and that will have a massive impact on players if stuff just vanishes.
It would also likely cause a complete loss of trust in the game/platform/MAâŚ
Just sayingâŚ
Wistrel
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This is likely the case, I was under the impression that the âtoolsâ had to do with game engine development tools and if the answer were easy to communicate, the planet partners would have probably said yes a long time ago, which leads me to believe there is a monetary and complexity attribute to this issue. Surely converting all the terrain, missions, mobs, items, assets is a major undertaking that could take a lot of time and development.
The concerning part however, is how the announcement was introduced so dramatically as an extinction event if the partners refused to transition (forcing their hand essentially). This raises questions about timelines, expectations, and transition.
Regardless of the path, players still need clarity on how the process is to unfold as it affects their assets and decision-making in the meantime.
Great point. If it wasnât an RCE model, they could play the extinction game all day, but because this is a real cash economy and involves players time, money, developer time and money, not to mention all the time and money theyâve invested so far, thereâs a lot on the line and itâs a much more delicate situation. Not one to be taken lightly.
While this doesnât mean that worst-case scenarios being mentioned are going to happen, when thereâs not communication from Mindark, it leads players to fill those gaps with speculation.
I think most players are not specifically looking for the endgame solution per-se, rather things like clarity on what reimbursement entails, what exactly is affected, how will the transition occur, or at least a simple status update would be nice.
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This is one theory but really we know nothing. I donât think it was the first they heard despite what they said not that it is that dramatic. Out of all theories I have seen I still think my expiring lease theory is the most reasonable.
But again. What if MA communicated with us? We wouldnât have to speculate
This is pure speculation from my part of why they did this but I got the feeling MA were annoyed over certain PPs
and made this to âget them goingâ for what ever reason, i.e put some presure on the PP.
When it comes to compensation MA said âfrom other PPsâ. How will they manage to give us something similar
to e.g a Dropship?
I think itâs time for MA give us some more info, they just canât throw something like that out and then
be dead silence.
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How? Easy peacy! Just switch some names.
Viceroy >> CDF Prototype
Turrelion >> Ancient Omegatron Assassinator
Paneleon Spec >> Hyperion Close Combat Armor
Zoraâs >> Aurora LRR65
Mawlood Graduate >> Chikara BB Rifle
See how easy it is?
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If they were interested in using their own models and creating a bunch of new items to cover what will be removed I
guess they had mentioned that instead. 
Itâs MA, they mention stuff after it happens ?
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Hey be fair nowâŚthey also mention stuff that never happens.
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I understand they got burned too often for announcing stuff that didnât come to fruition, or only much later, or not in the anticipated form. Plans can change or become obsolete for any number of reasons, or PR/sales didnât understand development processes. Announcing new features only when theyâre ready to roll out is a sane way of avoiding all that. In some cases you may not be able to avoid offering some information ahead of time, such as a complete engine change which will inevitably cause end-user friction as well. However, as said, due to RCE and the company structure with independent partners, those partners are in a difficult position when users withhold spending towards them because of uncertainties. If this goes so far as threatening their existence, you run the risk of being accused of malfeasance if you donât follow up with information that helps both companies and customers navigate the transition.
Let me answer for the
We have no idea what youâre talking about
They will be helped by bigger forces to understand it if necessary, is what Iâm saying.
I guess this have put MA in to a dilemma, because no matter what they do, or not do, could create problems.
If they confirm that some PPs gonna disapear, activity there will probably drop and activities to gather and
build items will die. Players decided to go for these things for a reason, one is that they saw this is what they
want with stats an all, and didinât chose anything from MA or other PPs. This will most probably cost MA some
and I mean the real cost not the one ingame.
If they donât say anything trust will probably drop some due to this. Puting players in a limbo when it comes to
chose what activity they should do, since there is not point in starting up something at a PP if we donât know
if we are able to finish e.g a mission chain or not. The risk for them is that activity decreases due to this, since
players chosed PP to be active at, even though most players will probably find something else to do.
As we donât know why they did this its hard to say what should be done or not, might even be so that some PP
isnât interested to continue and just keep everything going as long the deal with MA is on.
I think you have too much time, this is Mindark, a small company. Requiring updates like they owe us anything.
They said four years, they have contracts, they have employees a lot of things to think about.
Mindark has improved a lot the last year, even after lowering my avatars value with 70%, im still here, but just getting so frustrated with all your drama.
[Moderated: Removed rule violation]
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Thatâs understandable, to be cautious about communication.
However, avoiding questions on the situation or avoid making simple updates fills the void with a lot of uncertainty. Thereâs a lot at stake for the players and partner planets, and the lack of follow-up here is the focal point creating issues with trust and in the economy.
Even a simple status update or clarification on that original extinction post would go a long way.
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